Set in a Washington Heights neighborhood, “In The Heights” speaks to the American Dream from a distinctively Hispanic perspective. It underscores the notion of a universal multi-ethnic, multinational American immigrant experience. Ultimately it is about what really matters in life: the bonds and relationships that sustain us; a strong central point in the Latino community.

A vivacious Walnut Street Theater ensemble creates a community of irresistible characters, capturing all the life and energy of this Tony Award-winning musical.

Fueled by seductive salsa, samba, and merengue, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s music and lyrics and Quiara Hudes’ book weave a tale of love and loss about people who feel a combination of affection and embarrassment for the place they call home.

Hip-hopping over a hot Fourth of July weekend, the story involves a winning lottery ticket, two separate romances, a power black-out and a bit of conflict between the generations.

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Across the board, this is a very gifted group of actors supported by an equally talented ensemble of dancers and singers. In fact, the show practically leaps off the stage with high-energy choreography. Anna Louizos recreates her original eye-popping Broadway set design that immediately wows the audience.

The plot is a soap opera. Nina is the neighborhood success story, the daughter of industrious, no-nonsense parents who own a gypsy cab service; she’s back home after a bad first year at Stanford. Will she return to college, or will she settle back in with her boyfriend, the non-Hispanic Benny? Nina’s parents are happy to employ him, but they are unhappy to think of him joining their family.

At the center of it stands Usnavi, the young owner of a run-down bodega, selling coffee and lotto tickets, at least whenever a power outage hasn’t shut his store down or the local graffiti artist marked it up. Usnavi dreams of returning to the Dominican Republic with his abuela Claudia, who raised him.

Perry Young as Usvani, offers a rock-solid performance, acting as the narrator/participant of the storyline. The same has to be said for Julia Hunter as Nina and Rhett George as Benny. Gizel Jimenez as Usvani’s love interest, Vanessa, lends a crisp, streetwise counter to Usvani’s naiveté. Matthew Harris is most enjoyable as Usvani’s quick-witted cousin, Sonny.

Rayanne Gonzales anchors the neighborhood’s sense of family and community as Abuela Claudia — everyone’s grandmother figure. The marital tension between Nina’s parents is palpable, and convincingly portrayed in word and song by two strong actors — Danny Bolero as Kevin and Kimberly Fairbanks as Camila.

The downside of “In the Heights” is its lack of narrative sharpness. Ms. Hudes’ book is overstuffed and oversimplified as it stumbles to keep tabs on the breakthroughs and setbacks of those who live and work in this tight knit corner of the city.

You could easily be cynical about the show’s heartfelt belief in the possibility of a little love and a big lottery win making all things right. And the show makes no compromise with the cadence of its heavy rap lyrics. Sometimes, it was hard to understand what was being sung.

“Heights” is more functional and fun than it is enlightening or even memorable. Young love finds true love, old love reinforces fading love, the foreseeable right person wins the lottery and, just as foreseeable, the right person keels over dead exactly on cue and everyone is as cute as a litter of kittens.

Although you may lament the mechanical way these story lines are developed and resolved, staying tuned will be a pleasure if you have any affection for solid acting combined with electrifying dances and the bubbly, sultry sounds of Latin music.